Is a signature required to have a receipt for services valid?
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Is a signature required to have a receipt for services valid?
My husband fixed a car for an acquaintance and he will not pay unless the receipt is signed. Legally, does he have to sign it?
Asked on December 14, 2011 under Business Law, New Jersey
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 12 years ago | Contributor
No, the law does not require that a receipt be signed--though if the signature being sought is your husband's (it's not clear from your question whose signature is at stake), it seems like he should sign it in order to get paid--though he should sign or mark it as "paid" until he is paid, of course. (But he could sign it otherwise, without marking it as paid, if that helps resolve this.)
Regardless of signature, if your husband can prove that he did the work, he has to be paid at the agreed upon rate, or as per the estimate or quotation or proposal he'd provided before the work commenced (if any). If the acquiantence won't pay voluntarily, your husband will have to sue him in court to get the money. If the agreement to do the work, the rate for the work, etc. was all oral (nothing in writing), it may be more difficult to establish or prove the terms under which the work was done--but legally, if they can be proven (e.g. with testimony), if your husband did the work, he should be paid.
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